GO US: The rolling beaches and rugged seascapes of the Outer Banks, in North Carolina, make for a cracking family holiday on a coastline ripe with history, writes Joan Scales
'SEE THAT MAN, he's had five crab dinners and just ordered another one," said the barman, conspiratorially pointing out a thin, athletic male at the bar. Fascinated, I watched him tear apart yet another denizen of the deep and suck out every bit of juiciness.
"So you like crabs, then?" I asked. He turned, looked at me in a Johnny Cash kind of way and said: "It's like this: each one tastes different. One is sweeter than another, or saltier or chewier. I just love 'em."
Mr Crablover told us he was walking the Outer Banks, a series of barrier islands off North Carolina - a mad kind of thing to do in the summer with the temperature around 30 degrees.
The Outer Banks cover 200km of barrier islands, linked by bridges, causeways, ferries and a great road. They're a couple of kilometres across at the widest point, narrowing to just 500m or so.
You can explore fabulous Atlantic beaches where you can find shells, fish and dive or sail. Only parts of the beaches are patrolled by lifeguards. You can have other stretches to yourself. Or, if you bring a truck, you can drive over the dunes, a pastime that will soon be banned in these days of ecological awareness.
The sea is also responsible for this area being known as the graveyard of the Atlantic. More than 600 ships and submarines have foundered on its treacherous offshore rocks and shifting sand banks.
The islands are dotted with lighthouses, each one distinctive. The highest in the US, Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, standing at just over 63m, has protected the coastline for 130 years.
We met Mr Crablover at Dirty Dick's Crab House in Hatteras while waiting to take the ferry to Ocracoke, the penultimate Outer Banks island. We just had to see if the island's beach merited its top spot in Stephen "Dr Beach" Leatherman's America's Best Beaches list for 2007.
The free ferry service to Ocracoke is operated by North Carolina Transportation. Fast ferries make the 40-minute crossing all day from Hatteras to Ocracoke, carrying cars and trucks back and forth from early morning to midnight.
The town of Ocracoke, at the opposite end of the island from the ferry dock, gave us plenty of opportunity to see the famous beach, 25km of pure white sand, rolling waves and gentle dunes.
It was tempting, so we stopped, stripped off and dived into the waves. (We wholeheartedly agreed with Dr Beach.) You can do that in the Outer Banks in summer, because the sun is shining and the sea is warm - unlike the Atlantic by the time it gets to us. Also, all the beaches are free, unlike other places in the US.
Ocracoke is also famous for being the last stand of Edward Teach, better known as Blackbeard the pirate, where he fought and lost his final battle. The town itself is small, busy and an ideal spot to pick up a boat to go out fishing.
Today, the black-and-white- striped barber-pole lighthouse is also famous for having being moved. Although completely concrete, the building was shifted 884m inland in 1999 to save it from disappearing into the sea it was trying to protect sailors from.
This incredible feat saw it being moved on giant rollers, centimetre by centimetre, to its present site, and today it is still a beacon to sailors. For $7 (€4.80) you can climb the 268 steps to the top for a great view - and to marvel at the move.
Lighthouses and Blackbeard are not the only things the Outer Banks are famous for. It was here in 1903 that the Wright Brothers first made it into the air. The first flight took place at the strangely named Kill Devil Hills, the only raised ground on the islands, where the brothers built a downhill track to help get the Flyer into the air.
Wilbur and Orville Wright were convinced they could do it and tried time after time to get their flimsy aircraft into the air. Eventually, on the morning of December 17th, 1903, the Flyer took off for a 12-second powered flight, taking Orville on a journey of 37m.
On the site there is now a large memorial and museum to their endeavours and to flight. In the museum a sign reads "From here to the moon in 66 years", a statement that brings the reality of the brothers' achievement into perspective.
The Outer Banks are where the first colony of English settlers came, in 1585, financed by Sir Walter Raleigh, to establish a settlement on Roanoke Island.
Governor White, who led the colonists, returned to England for supplies and to bring more settlers. War with Spain intervened, however, and he was pressed into service for the queen of England. It was three years before he returned, only to discover that all the colonists, 115 men and women, had disappeared.
The only evidence was the bones of one man. All the others had vanished, though it is thought that they may have integrated with locals. A drama production of the story is told during the summer at the Waterside Theatre in Roanoke.
The Outer Banks are a great family holiday destination, with a lot to do for everyone. Most Americans who come here are sporty, and sailing, fishing, diving, kite- and windsurfing and kayaking are all easily accessible.
All year round there are events and festivals, though many tend to be in the summer, when the weather is nice. The area gets 200 days of sunshine each year, but the Outer Banks are shaped by the sea, and the occasional nor'easter storm will remind you why the houses are built on pilings.
Where to stay, where to eat and where to go
Where to stay
• Colony IV By The Sea. 405 S Virginia Dare Trail, Kill Devil Hills, 00-1-252-4415581, www.motelbythesea.com. A nice family-run hotel close to the Wright Brothers Memorial. If you want to see the sea, request a room on floors three or four. The sand dunes come up to the second floor.
• Lighthouse View Motel. 46677 NC Highway 12, Buxton, 00-1-252-9955680, www.lighthouseview.com. Buxton, halfway down the Outer Banks, an ideal base for sightseeing. It is also the eighth-best beach in the US, as rated by Dr Beach. Good-sized rooms with their own entrances and balconies make this an ideal place for a family break. There are also a swimming pool and hot-tub.
• The Inn on Pamlico Sound. 49684 Highway 12, Buxton, 00-1-252-9957030, www.innonpamlicosound.com. It would be difficult to find a better place to watch the sunset than here. It is also perhaps the best guesthouse in the Outer Banks, with a great restaurant. The inn is lovingly run, with comfortable rooms and lots of extras, such as free snacks all day, an honesty bar and kayaks to paddle around in. It also has a small swimming pool.
• You could also rent a house for a family, group of friends or other large party. Many are big American homes with lots of bedrooms and bathrooms, on or close to the beach. The pleasant town of Duck had some particularly nice family houses.
• Village Realty (www.village realtyobx.com) and Sun Realty (www.sunrealtync. com) are two agencies that specialise in vacation rentals. Find details of private rentals from Outer Banks Visitors Bureau (www. outerbanks. org).
• You could also stay at one of the Outer Banks' four campsites, where you can park your motorhome (rented for $1,000-$1,400 (€700- €975) per week from www. rvrentalsofamerica.com, among others), pitch a tent or rent a wooden cabin. The Kampgrounds of America site (www.koa.com) at Cape Hatteras is just a few steps over dunes from the Atlantic.
Where to eat
• Dirty Dick's Crab House. Landing Boardwalk, Hatteras, www.dirtydickscrabs.com, 00-1-252-9953425.
• Fishbones Raw Bar Restaurant. 1171 Duck Road, 00-1-252-2616991, www.fishbonessunsetgrille.com.
• The Inn on Pamlico Sound. 49684 Highway 12, Buxton, 00-1-252-9957030, www.innonpamlicosound.com.
Where to go
• Ponder the mystery of the Lost Colony at the drama in the Waterside Theatre on Roanoke. www.thelostcolony. org.
• Visit the Wright Brothers Memorial and Museum. The Park Rangers are excellent at describing the event. www.nps.gov/wrbr.
• Visit the Elizabethan gardens (1411 National Park Drive, Manteo, www.elizabethangardens.org) on Roanoke Island.
• Climb Jockey's Ridge, the highest sand dune on the east coast. It varies from 24m to 30m, depending on the weather. www.jockeysridge statepark.com
• Pant your way to the top of Cape Hatteras Lighthouse. The view makes it well worth the effort. www.hatteras-nc. com/light.
• Swim, fish, sail, dive, kite-surf, kayak, parasail, seek dolphins or just take a sunset cruise.
• Play crazy golf, pitch and putt or bowling or go for a spin on go-karts.
• Rent a big house, stock the fridge with beer, sodas, steaks and hot dogs and live like an American.
Go there: Aer Lingus (www.aer lingus.com) flies to Washington DC, about a five-hour drive through Virginia from the Outer Banks.